I was a bit skeptical of Nice because I didn’t have great experience in France before. I got there with a bad mindset, but I actually loved my time in this city. The proximity of the sea & the sun made all the difference. If I could go back to Nice, this is how I would spend my time:
- Best way to enjoy your morning (breakfast)
- List of activities
- Best way to enjoy lunch & dinner
- How many nights you should spend in Nice
Best way to enjoy your morning
If you arrived the night before, and you are starting your day early in Nice, don’t waste any time. Get up and go walk around to find a little place to eat breakfast. France is known for its great croissants and “pain au chocolat”. Find a pastry shop and enjoy these little delicacies.
List of activities
Here is a list of activities I recommend doing. Since you are spending two days in Nice, I wrote at the end of each activity how long it takes to experience them fully.
Place Masséna is a historic square in the center of Nice for tourists. It’s the biggest place in the city. It’s surrounded by shops and restaurants. It’s a really nice place to enjoy the sun in the summer. You can easily spend 2–3 hours shopping and eating at Place Masséna.
Walk on Promenade des Anglais and enjoy the beach. This promenade is 7.5 km long. Public Plage Magnan (beach) follows Promenade des Anglais for a couple of kilometers. The water in the Mediterranean Sea is very nice and blue. If you want to enjoy the sun and get a tan, this activity is for you. You can easily spend an afternoon there!
Monaco !! Of course, it is a destination on its own, but if you are in Nice, it’s really worth taking a full day and visiting this city. You can take a train from Nice to Monaco that costs 3.6 euros (5$ CAD) and takes 30 minutes.
Best way to enjoy lunch & dinner
Lunch in France is normally at noon & dinner is around 8 pm. Since I didn’t have a lot of time in this city, I only tried one restaurant and a bakery. Here are my reviews of them:
J.Multari CIMIEZ (bakery)
- They have a good variety of pastries for breakfast and dessert.
- I went 4 times and always bought a sandwich for lunch. They were very good.
- The prices are very reasonable.
- It’s far from the center of Nice, but if you’re close to this bakery like my Airbnb was, it’s worth a little stop.
Overall, I rate this place a 4★.
Le Hall (AYCE sushi)
- The sushis were so good.
- The staff was very kind and answered all of our questions.
- You can either eat À La Carte or All You Can Eat. For the price, 21 euros (30$ CAD), the AYCE is the best option and the most worth it.
Overall, I rate this place a 4.5★.
How many nights you should spend in Nice
Here are the 2 options I mainly recommend:
If you arrive late at night: In this option, when you get to Nice, there’s not much you can do except for dinner and going out. That is why I would recommend waking up early the next morning and spending the next two days in Nice. You can sleep one more night (3 in total) and leave in the morning.
If you arrive in the morning / the day: In this option, when you arrive in Nice, you can start to explore the city on the day you get there. In the evening, have a nice dinner and go out at night. Sleep and enjoy one more day in this city. In total, you will spend 2 nights there. Pack your things and leave after the second night.
You have now had the perfect two full days in Nice. You have, in my opinion, seen the best side of it. It is now time for you to start exploring the amazing other regions of France in the following days.
